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About USU

The mission of the Uniformed Services University of Health Sciences is to educate, train, and comprehensively prepare uniformed services health professionals, scientists, and leaders to support the Military and Public Health Systems, the National Security and National Defense Strategies of the United States, and the readiness of our Uniformed Services.

Academics

Since our first graduating class in 1982, the USU's MDs. Nurses and graduates in biomedical sciences provide exceptional service through service in the U.S. Military and civilian careers of distinction. Today, America's Medical School has 691 enrolled students and 5,043 graduates. Over 1,300 graduates in Biomedical Sciences lead aggressive research in medical research. Today's 663 graduates of the School of Nursing blend science, research and field training in advanced practice and PhD degrees. The USU's Postgraduate Dental College provides advanced degree's to the military's dental community, graduating 72 students since establishment.

Research At USU

The University's research program covers a range of clinical and other topics important to both the military and public health. Infectious diseases, trauma medicine, health maintenance, and cancer are areas of particular strength. Researchers are also making important new efforts in state-of-the-art fields that cut across disciplines, such as genomics, proteomics, and drug-delivery mechanisms.

Centers

USU is home to many different Centers and Institutes, which help advance the university's research, education and public service missions. Faculty members and students collaborate with other leading experts at USU's Centers and Institutes on projects that push incredible boundaries across manifold disciplines of biomedical science. Their work is shaping military medicine and world health in many positive, powerful ways.

Military At USU

The USU's military unique curriculum is supported by military professions from all services who teach USU's military and civilian students. All military personnel are supported by the USU Brigade, the Brigade staff are managed by the Military Personnel Office.

AFRRI At USU

AFRRI mission is to preserve the health and performance of U.S. military personnel and to protect humankind through research that advances understanding of the effects of ionizing radiation.

To these ends, the institute collaboratively researches the biological effects of ionizing radiation and provides medical training and emergency response to manage incidents related to radiation exposure.

Biography

Dr. Pollard received his undergraduate degree from Rice University, and his MD and PhD (in Biochemistry) degrees from the University of Chicago. Following postdoctoral training at the NIH and at Oxford University, Dr. Pollard returned to the NIH in the U.S. Public Health Service (USPHS), eventually becoming intramural Chief of the Laboratory of Pathology, and then Chief of the Laboratory of Cell Biology and Genetics, NIDDK. Dr. Pollard subsequently moved across Wisconsin Avenue to become Chair of the Department of Anatomy, Physiology and Genetics, in the Uniformed Services University School of Medicine, Bethesda, MD. Dr. Pollard’s principal hypothesis-driven research focus has been on proinflammatory mechanisms. Dr. Pollard is the Founding Director of the Collaborative Health Initiative Research Program (CHIRP), a whole genome sequencing (WGS) program of investigation, jointly sponsored by NHLBI and the Department of Defense. In addition, Dr. Pollard is also Founding Director of The American Genome Center (TAGC), a Department of Defense entity that is one of only four academic Genome Centers in the United States.The goals of CHIRP and the TAGC are to develop “precision medicine” as an aid to diagnosis and treatment of disorders of common interest in both civilian and military disease cohorts. Dr. Pollard has received the NIH Inventor’s Award, and has authored nearly 350 peer reviewed scientific publications and numerous invited chapters.

Representative publications, projects, and/or deployments

M.D. University of Chicago School of Medicine,

Ph.D. (Biochemistry) Department of Biochemistry, University of Chicago School of Medicine,

Research Associate, Laboratory of Chemical Biology, NIAMDD, National Institutes of Health